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Dr. Mercola's Censored Library (Private Membership)

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Guillermou's avatar
Guillermou
May 21Edited

Vitamin D is involved in the production of melatonin, a crucial sleep hormone that regulates sleep-wake cycles. In a way, vitamin D and melatonin are like two sides of the same circadian rhythm coin: daylight stimulates vitamin D production, while darkness stimulates melatonin production. Insufficient melatonin can cause insomnia or sleep disorders, and a common indicator of low melatonin is waking up groggy and unrested in the morning.

https://get-base.com/blog/vitamin-d-sleep (2021)

The serotonergic pathway, highlighting the potential importance of vitamin D supplementation and UVB exposure in regulating serotonin and melatonin.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1087079220301222 (2021)

Melatonin and vitamin D3 (VD3) had similar absorption rates, but VD3 significantly inhibited melatonin absorption until the melatonin concentration was clearly higher than that of VD3.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jpi.12618 (2019)

A 3-week treatment course was initiated with low-dose melatonin (0.5 mg/day) combined with a single administration of oral vitamin D (50,000 IU/week and 1,000 IU/day). Combined vitamin D and melatonin therapy will accumulate therapeutic efficacy and help avoid high doses and long-term treatment courses in chronic insomnia.

https://n.neurology.org/content/90/15_Supplement/P5.320 (2018)

Experimental and clinical evidence indicates that inflammation, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial dysfunction are consistent with low levels of melatonin and vitamin D, and also represent risk factors related to the development and maintenance of prevalent acute and chronic pathologies.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0960076019305990 (2020)

Melatonin synthesis and secretion are suppressed by light and increased by darkness. Melatonin exerts its effects primarily through different pathways, with the melatonin receptor 1 (MT1) and melatonin receptor 2 (MT2) being the predominant receptor types, expressed mainly in many mammalian organs. Melatonin helps regulate sleep patterns and circadian rhythms. In addition, melatonin acts as an antioxidant and eliminates excess free radicals generated in the body due to its anti-excitatory and anti-inflammatory properties. Melatonin exhibits a wide variety of other functions, including oncostatic, sleep-inducing, immune-regulating, reproductive, puberty-synchronizing, and mood-regulating effects.

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10571-023-01324-w (2023)

The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) consists of 19 self-administered questions and 5 questions scored by the patient's partner or roommate.

https://www.sleep.pitt.edu/psqi (2026). Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT-I) for insomnia should include cognitive, behavioral, and educational components.

1) Cognitive interventions: Cognitive restructuring attempts to change inaccurate or counterproductive thoughts about sleep.

2) Behavioral interventions: Controlling stimuli before bedtime, sleep restriction and compression, and incorporating relaxation techniques help establish healthy bedtime habits.

3) Providing information about the connection between thoughts, feelings, behaviors, and sleep is fundamental in CBT-I. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) reduces sleep time and improves sleep efficiency, decreasing nighttime awakenings and the severity of insomnia. It reduces cortical hyperactivation during sleep and increases the stability of NREM sleep.

The effects are long-lasting, even after therapy ends. The link is very interesting:

https://www.sleepfoundation.org/insomnia/treatment/cognitive-behavioral-therapy-insomnia?utm_source=chatgpt.com (2025).—

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945724003587?utm_source=chatgpt.com (2024).--

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-026-03882-1 (2026).-

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1389945724004994 (2024).- This meta-analysis shows that modern CBT-I applied to depression results in less nighttime anxiety, depression, and rumination.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165032724014952?utm_source=chatgpt.com (2025).- In addition to the serotonin-melatonin pathway, recent studies converge on the idea that insomnia is not corrected with "sedation," but rather with a reduction in hyperactivation (cortisol + sympathetic nervous system) and restoration of the GABA system. Sleep improves when the brain stops being in "threat mode" and returns to "GABAergic inhibition mode." GABAergic inhibition is the main mechanism for reducing neuronal excitability in the central nervous system of mammals.

The most recent research (2025-2026) has delved deeper into the connection between the gut-brain axis and how GABA not only calms the mind but also regulates the inflammatory and hormonal response to chronic stress.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-026-03882-1?utm_source=chatgpt.com (2026).—

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40274802/ (2025)

A comprehensive review explaining how GABA produced by the gut microbiota (the "gut-derived GABA") communicates with the central nervous system. It analyzes how this process can break the vicious cycle where stress elevates cortisol, which in turn disrupts sleep and increases emotional vulnerability.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40274802/ (2025)

A comprehensive review explaining how GABA produced by the gut microbiota ("gut-derived GABA") communicates with the central nervous system. It analyzes how this process can break the vicious cycle where stress elevates cortisol, which in turn disrupts sleep and increases emotional vulnerability. https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnins.2025.1570173/full (2025)

https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/26/20/10233 (2025)

https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT06226259 (2026)

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Anne's avatar
Anne
May 21

I just thought you’d be interested in this rubbish

https://robertyoho.substack.com/p/435-a-requiem-for-dr-joseph-mercola?utm_source=post-email-title&publication_id=690651&post_id=193381662&utm_campaign=email-post-title&isFreemail=true&r=1qs7iy&triedRedirect=true&utm_medium=email

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